A weekend in the Kingdom of Eswatini

[Noneking]

 

[Noneking]

 

[Noneking]

 

[Noneking]

We arrived in Piggs Peak after a hard morning of riding. Mark picked a classy establishment for our lunch and we ate like kings ………. Or maybe subjects [emoji48]

 

[Grunder]

About 6 weeks ago, I had a spill on my 990 and ended up having 3x broken ribs. It was torture not riding for 5 weeks and the pain wasn’t pleasant either.

Going down a slippery path, I made the rookie mistake of taking the high line. I should’ve known better….. the 890 slipped out from under me and I heard the same sickening sound emanating from my ribcage as I went down hard on the rocky edge of the path as 6 weeks before on the 990….. This time on my RH side. I couldn’t believe it!

I tried to pick my bike up, but the pain was excruciating. The guys helped me and soon the wheels were rolling again.  I could feel a painful stiffness slowly setting in across my chest.


At the next river crossing, I got dosed proper on pain meds and I agreed to continue riding as long as I could


The Gauteng guys were suffering in the extreme humidity and the adventure jackets they were all wearing were making things worse

Oh no.

No you have rib-anxiety [emoji6]

Hope you were able to finish the trip this time.

 

[Noneking]

After lunch I really started to struggle. I was doing ok on open terrain where I could stand and absorb impact with my legs, but as soon as it got slow and I had to use my upper body things would go pear-shaped.  Dropping my bike in silly situations standing still and the  the rest of the group having to pick it up for me. I was in a lot of discomfort and the guys were getting really tired from picking up my bike.

 

[Noneking]

Some more slipping and falling

 

[Noneking]

Crowd loving the action. The people of Swaziland are amazing. Very friendly and you never feel unsafe

 

[Noneking]

Following Mark down into the valley

 

[onderbroek]

Pap = Power

I downed many a Mageu in times where I had to dig deep.

 

[Noneking]

 

[Noneking]

And then began the 90 minute mission to get all the bikes to the other side of that river…

 

[Noneking]

Mark's 990 dug into the sand and soon the exhausts were under water. The guys rushed in to help. I was  left standing on the bank on video duty. It was clear that the 790/890s would not cross here as wading depth would be a big issue. We had to ride out of the valley again and look for another spot to cross the river after which we would meet up with Mark.

 

[Noneking]

Getting to the other side was easier said than done. I was still unable handle my bike in the slow stuff and dropped it 3 times. One of those down a steep embankment which sapped the energy of my riding buddies to the point of utter exhaustion.

 

[Noneking]

Made it out of the valley. Don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see tar!

 

[Noneking]

We arrived at Maguga Lodge on Maguga Dam where we promptly ordered some much needed Sebebes. I took some more pain killers. Not sure whether it was the alcohol or the pain killers, but slowly I started to feel better. I took some pain killers again before going to bed and slept like a baby. The next morning was a rude awakening....  It was pouring with rain outside. It felt like someone was twisting a dagger in my side. My kit was all still sopping wet from the previous day's river crossings and all in all I did not feel like riding my bike. We lay in bed waiting for the rain to stop and after some breakfast and more medication, I felt like I would be able to ride my bike. Mark said we'd be taking an easy route to the low lying areas of Swaziland due the the rain. I was stupid enough to believe him.... again. eepwall:

 

[Grunder]

Mark said we'd be taking an easy route...

In most of your RR's this seems to be his line.

How many times do you want to fall for the same line?

https://youtu.be/-yV7nK8lF8Q

 

[Noneking]

Mark said we'd be taking an easy route...

In most of your RR's this seems to be his line.

How many times do you want to fall for the same line?

https://youtu.be/-yV7nK8lF8Q

Ek is 'n trusting tipe ou...... eepwall:

 

[skydiver]

So.....was jy dokter toe?
Hoeveel ribbes is hierdie keer af?  eepwall:

 

[Noneking]

So.....was jy dokter toe?
Hoeveel ribbes is hierdie keer af?  eepwall:

Voel maar baie selfde as verlede keer, maar gaan nie weer xstrale neem ens nie. Elk geval nie veel wat mens kan doen nie.